Types Of Databases By Kazi Rashid Number - 1443 Words

All you need to know: Types of Databases By Kazi Rashid number:RAS14002716 September 28 2014 This document contains all the information about the advantages and disadvantages of different database models. By Kazi Rashid 23/09/2014 Unit 21 Data Analysis and Design All about Databases Databases, we use them most of the time in our lives from organising files to storing music on our computers. What are databases? Databases are an organised way of storing data. Before computers many databases were stored in paper folders. The disadvantage of this was that searching for files was very time consuming. Now that we have computers life has become much easier for people. We are able to store lots of data through software, allowing people to†¦show more content†¦A simple way to show the uses of flat file databases are using spread sheets. Looking at the table above the rows contain particular information about the person and the columns contain the different categories, this is known as the field. What are the benefits of Flat file databases? The main benefits of using a flat file data base is that they are easy to setup. This means that you don’t need expert knowledge on PCs to understand how to use them. They are also easy to understand as they have a simple design and layout. Users can access information from them simply when you have small amounts of data. What are the negative of using a flat file database? One of the main negatives about flat file databases are that data is often repeated as there is no referential integrity. Referential integrity means that there is a direct link of two different attributes in a database. This helps the computer understand that certain data does not need to be repeated continuously. Without this, to be able to change information about a particular person or item, then you have to update each entry you have made about the item. This can also be very time consuming. Another negative about flat file databases is that you can make errors that can cause many problems with finding information. Looking at the example below, this table shows the number of purchases a single customer has